Producer Graham King launches film releasing company

Tue, 09/28/2010 - 03:00 EDT - LA Times

The venture, named FilmDistrict, plans to acquire and distribute four to eight movies a year in what could be a boost for independent films.In a move that could boost the shrinking independent film market, producer Graham King has formed a new releasing company and hired industry veteran Bob Berney as president of theatrical distribution.

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Los Angeles (AFP) - DreamWorks Animation announced plans Thursday to cut 500 jobs and reduce the number of films it produces over the next three years as part of a "strategic" plan to cut costs and boost profits.

Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. Chief Executive Officer Bill Doyle, who fended off BHP Billiton Ltd.’s hostile takeover bid for the Canadian fertilizer producer only to later lose a price war with a Russian rival, will step down after almost 15 years.

Amazon.com, fresh from its recent Golden Globe win for its original television show “Transparent,” said Monday it would begin to produce and acquire original movies for theatrical release as well as distribute them sooner on its Prime video service.

Interesting comment from one of our readers on digital film distribution:
I distribute films and did so for
a major studio for some years. Not an exhaustive answer but here are a
few things at work in no particular order.
The delay for video rental after the theatrical release is because
the exhibitors (movie chains like Regal) insist on not having their
business encroached by the home video market.

The search target: a Canadian money manager with at least $3-billion of equity assets under management.
The reason: Florida-based Raymond James Financial, which has had a brokerage operation in Canada for dozen years, wants to expand into asset management and would like to talk to interested parties.

FilmDistrict is turning to audiences for help marketing its new film, the Gerard Butler action thriller “Olympus Has Fallen.” The independent distributor will release brief videos of reactions to early screenings of the film using Vine, Twitter’s video sharing app.

Over the last ten years I managed to do something, that, with the benefit of hindsight, would appear to be somewhat remarkable. I financed, produced, directed, marketed and distributed seven documentary films that treated the subject of sexuality in a way that is unprecedented in cinema.